How to get the transcript of a YouTube video
- Copy the video link from the address bar, or tap Share, then Copy link in the YouTube app. Shorts and youtu.be links work too.
- Paste it above and press Get transcript. The full transcript appears in a few seconds next to the video.
- Turn Timestamps off for clean paragraphs, or keep them on and click any time to jump the video to that moment.
- Copy the text, or download it as a TXT file or an SRT subtitle file.
Transcripts with or without timestamps
With timestamps, every line starts with its time, such as 2:15, which is useful for quoting, making notes or finding a moment again. Without timestamps the lines are joined into readable paragraphs, which is better for reading, summaries and blog posts. The SRT download keeps exact start and end times, so it can be loaded into video editors and subtitle tools.
Summarize a YouTube video with ChatGPT or Claude
Copy for ChatGPT / Claude copies the video title, channel, link and the full transcript as plain text. Paste it into an AI chat and ask for a summary, the key points, a list of steps, quiz questions or a translation. Long videos can be over the length limit of some free AI plans, so ask for a summary of each part if needed.
Auto-generated vs uploaded captions
Many creators upload their own subtitles, which are usually accurate and often available in several languages. When there are none, YouTube makes automatic captions with speech recognition. They are free of charge but can miss names, technical terms and punctuation. The language menu shows which is which, and uploaded captions are picked first when they exist.
Why some videos have no transcript
- The creator turned captions off, or the video has no speech.
- The video is very new and YouTube has not finished its automatic captions, which can take a while after upload.
- The video is private, members-only or age-restricted.
- It is a live stream that is still running.
Can you get a transcript on YouTube itself?
On a computer, open the video, expand the description and choose Show transcript. It works, but the panel is hard to copy from, has no search across languages and cannot be downloaded. This tool gives you the same captions as clean text and files.
Using transcripts responsibly
Transcripts belong to the people who made the videos. Quoting short passages with credit, taking notes and studying are generally fine; republishing whole transcripts as your own content is not.